Just in time for the warm spring weather, a new pop up shop on Main Street will bring the wares of eleven artists and designers into the Final Friday mix.
The PopShop Group, founded by three local women, is taking over the space at 1301 Main Street and filling it with locally designed clothing, accessories, books and home goods displayed in a terrain constructed from cardboard and brightly-colored duct tape. The Final Friday PopShop will also have do-it-yourself stations with ready-made designs that gallery walkers can use to make their own goods - like a purse or backpack - from recycled materials.
One of the shop's organizers, Tamia Stinson, said the shop intends to bring exposure to Cincinnati's artist-entrepreneurs, and let them test the downtown/Over-the-Rhine market.
"Oftentimes we come across people who are interested in opening their own business, and obviously Main Street is one of the more creative areas of the city," Stinson said. "So it's a really good opportunity for people who are exploring doing something bigger for themselves to get a good idea of what shoppers might expect, and what it would take to open a storefront down here."
Stinson's two partners in the project are Jessie Cundiff, a ceramicist who is a partner at
MUD on Main, and Catherine Richards, art director and program manager of the
Future Blooms program. Stinson said the three first met through the
Merchants on Main group, which promotes commerce in the Main Street District of Over-the-Rhine. Stinson said they hope to hold the PopShops every month from Spring through Fall.
This week's PopShop will feature goods by a number of local designers, including clothes from the
Brush Factory, books by Katie Louvre and jewelry from Hark and Hark. Other vendors include Carla Rabbit, Saint Lexi, Katie Swartz, Dulcet Design, The Sarah Center and the 4th Street Boutique.
The Sarah Center is a program at
St. Francis Seraph that supports women who make their own jewelry and clothing, and provides a venue in which they can sell them. The
4th Street Boutique is a high-end thrift and vintage shop that funds
Dress for Success, a program that provides interview attire for low income women who are seeking better employment.
The Final Friday PopShop opens Friday from 5 to 10 p.m. with music and "treats" and will also be open Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. During Saturday's hours the shop will become a studio, with vendors demonstrating their work on-site. From noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday the 4th Street Boutique will hold a trunk show to benefit Dress for Success.
Writer: Henry Sweets
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